Inspection Detail

Inspection: 119939635 - Sugar Foods Corporation

Inspection Information - Office: Van Nuys District Office

Investigation Summary

On February 8, 2001, Employee #1 fractured his left knee and lower left leg when he fell off an unstable hopper rack while attempting to place a strap onto the hopper rack. Two employees were working in the "#5 Dumping Room", and were in the process of loading a 2,000 pound bag of sugar onto the "white" hopper rack. His coworker had placed the bag of sugar on a pallet jack, raised it up and positioned it over the hopper. He then climbed up the fixed ladder on one side of the hopper rack and positioned two of the straps of the bag onto the hopper rack. Employee #1 climbed up the fixed ladder on the other side of the hopper rack and placed one of the two remaining straps of the bag onto a hook of the hopper rack. He was attempting to place the last strap onto the hopper rack, but was having difficulty attaching the strap. His coworker saw that he was having difficulty placing the strap. So he climbed down and moved the pallet jack, trying to position the bag where he could hook the last strap. Suddenly, the pallet broke and the bag of sugar swung out, causing the hopper rack, which was not bolted to the floor, to fall over. Employee #1 was thrown off the hopper rack to the concrete floor, approximately 7 feet. He fractured his left knee and left lower leg. Employee #1 was taken by ambulance to Pacifica Hospital, Sun Valley, where he was examined, given some treatment, and told that he needed to be transferred to USC Medical Center, where he could be seen by an orthopedic surgeon. Employee #1 was transferred and was hospitalized for six days, with a diagnosis of multiple fractures in the left knee and lower left leg.

Keywords: KNEE, FRACTURE, FALL, HOPPER, LEG